Walking Through Co. {review}

//t-shirt: c/o walking through co. / cardigan: h&m / jeans: forever21 / booties: thrifted / necklace: gift from Josh//

Hey guys! Again...it's been over a month since I blogged. At the time of my last outfit post, I had prepared a whole bunch of posts to go up, including some vacation, sewing, outfit, and lifestyle-type posts, but pretty quickly after that, life got stressful again, things happened, and I just didn't feel like blogging. But life has gotten (mostly) back to normal, I've finished my class (yay!), it's almost Christmas (yay!), and Josh and I are coming up on our first anniversary of dating (also super exciting. It's hard to believe it's already been a year!).

And I don't really want to make promises, since I feel I've made this same spiel a lot this year, but I'm really hoping to get this blog up and going again. I've got a new design in the works that I started working on in October, and I've still got all those posts (including a pumpkin patch post, haha. Let me know if you guys are still interested in something like that!) saved up. 

Anyway...a little while ago I was contacted by a new company called "Walking Through Co." that puts out t-shirts with Christian-themed designs, asking if I'd like to review one of their shirts. I chose to review this one, which is pretty simple with its black heart with a cross in the center. It's exactly my style of late, as I've been obsessed with incorporating lots of gray into my outfits. I know I talked about this in a post from this summer, but I just love gray. It just seems like a warm, comforting color to me, which may sound crazy, but...haha. Anyway, the shirt came really quickly after I sent them my info (and the gal I worked with was always super sweet), and I'm kinda in love with it. It's super soft and comfy, and I really like the slouchy fit. I've washed it once now and it's held up well. The design actually softened a bit, which I am ok with. I paired it with my crazy new high-low cardigan from H&M (which I got after watching the first Xmen...I told my boyfriend I wanted a long, hooded jacket like Rogue's...then I found this), high-waisted skinnies, and thrifted booties to complete the look. 

I'm really happy with this tee and I do recommend checking out the Walking Through Co. Their shirts are a bit on the pricey side, but are good quality and cute designs. 

Have a great day, guys, and I'll talk to you soon. :)

fall transitions with julep

//dress, shoes, belt: thrifted / cardigan: H&M / tights: JCP / cross ring: f21 / infinity ring: vintage//

Hey guys! Long time, no see! No worries, I'll let you know what I've been up to over the past couple months soon, but first I have something I'm super excited to share with you. Julep is a really great company, based locally in Seattle. They have amazing monthly subscription boxes filled with nail polishes and beauty products. I've been a subscriber for over a year now, and I've never been disappointed. My favorite eyeshadow palette is by Julep—I use it almost every day, and I'm actually wearing the eyeshadow in these photos! So if you're looking for a good subscription box to try, I highly recommend them. 

Anyway, I'm teaming up with Julep to bring you a fall-themed fashion post based off of one of their fall polish colors. They sent me this infographic with all the colors. 

My inspiration for this outfit was their pale pink color, Clara. This dress is actually the one I wore for this Easter, and I've been reluctant to wear it again by itself, because it is ever so slightly too small at the top. So I made the look much more fall-appropriate by adding gray tights and layering a black cardigan over the top.

What do you think? Which of these colors is your favorite for fall?

gray days are my favorite

//cardigan, oxfords: thrifted / dress: ross / belt: old navy / bracelet: gift / tights: JCP//

I love the entire atmosphere of gray days...the textures of the clouds, the deeper, more subtle colors, the cool (hopefully not muggy) air, just everything about them. The clear blue skies and hot weather Seattle has seen for the past however many days have been making me long for one of those perfectly chilly gray days...well, just generally longing for fall, I guess. I'm so wimpy when it comes to the heat. I mean, I love a chance to break out my cute sundresses, but after a few days of 80° weather, I am more than ready to return to my frumpy sweaters and tights. This morning, I was so excited to see cloudy skies and fog, but that all burned off within a few hours, and now there's hardly a cloud in the sky...I may still have a while to wait before I get that ideal gray day. 

Ooh, so last night I made it out to see Guardians of the Galaxy with my boyfriend and a group of his friends. So much goodness!! Great writing, loads of wonderfully quotable lines, good characters, fun soundtrack (hehe), and it was pretty, too...which is always a plus. I loved Groot. And Rocket. Josh and I were almost wondering if we liked it better than The Avengers...that's how much we enjoyed it. Have any of you seen it? What did you think?? 

what i made: easy, breezy chambray skirt

//t-shirt, belt, sandals: thrifted / skirt: made by me//

This is one of my more recent sewing projects (I have another that I just finished, and I'm so excited to share it with you!), and probably one of the most versatile that I've created so far. It's just an easy skirt made with two loooooong rectangles, sewn together, then cinched to fit my waist, then I added a side zipper and a snap closure. I had also decided that I wanted a little something extra, so I added in a faux placket and stitched a line of buttons down the front. I think it adds the perfect retro touch. :) My only personal issue with the finished product is that it's a wee bit poofy...but that's not a huge problem. Other than that, I love it. 

This week is my second to last week of my summer class before I get one whole week of break...woohoo! This constitutional law class has been fascinating and I've learned a LOT, but I'm so excited to be done with the hundreds of pages of reading per week and essays and tests. It's been one of the most stressful classes I've ever taken, just based on the sheer amount of coursework. Still, very much worth it. 

Hope you all are having a fantastic week!

hiking little si // flashback friday

A couple weeks after hiking Franklin Falls, Josh and I decided to attempt to hike Little Si, also around the Snoqualmie Pass area. In the book of hikes I had been perusing, it was listed as a "moderate" hike, and I figured I was up for it. The day of the hike, it had been raining, but there was a slight sun break as right as Josh arrived at my house to pick me up. So we decided to chance the weather...as soon as we got on the freeway, it started pouring. I'm not sure what made us keep going, but we did, and I'm glad we did, because just before we reached our destination, the sun decided to come back out. We were blessed with dry weather for the entire hike up, which I, in my hugely out of shape state, somehow managed to survive...though it may have gotten to the point where Josh was practically dragging me along behind him to make sure I was still moving, because right before we reached the top, I was getting pretty exhausted. But the view was completely worth the hike up. We were able to watch the fog coming in to completely cover the mountains, until we couldn't see past the rock beneath our feet. It was surreal. I said at the time that it was like standing on the edge of the earth.

We ate lunch at the top, and right as we finished, it started to hail. Thankfully, the trees provided a good covering from that as we hurried back down. I felt reenergized, and so incredibly thankful that the way back was mostly downhill. 

It was a fun hike, and I definitely wouldn't mind doing it again, if not only for that amazing view up at the top. I'm hoping that now that the spring weather seems to have started, we will have the opportunity for many more hikes, hopefully with less chance of rain and hail. 

busy, busy, busy

//dress, choker, belt: thrifted / shoes: eBay / quartz necklace: JCP//

This has become sort of my latest go-to outfit. It's comfy and casual enough to wear around the house, but super easy to dress up for going out. I love the quirky, bright pattern, and the fact that it has pockets. I've also discovered that it's surprisingly versatile, which is what I'm always looking for in a dress. I wore this to dinner with the boyfriend's family a few weeks ago, and then I think at least one time since then. I can tell this one's going to get a lot of wear this summer...especially since it's been so warm here in Seattle for the past week! It's hard to believe that I was wearing sweaters to keep warm on the 4th of July and now it's sundresses all the way. 

I'm happy I only signed up for one class this summer...this constitutional law course has been fairly intensive, even for one course! I love the material and the topics we're covering, but it's just so much to digest. Then other things cropping up along with schoolwork and babysitting—church convention, and then the boyfriend hurting his back this last week...I've been pretty busy. This week, though, I've been able to work ahead and spend some time doing things I've been wanting to do, like sewing and whipping my disaster zone of a room into shape. 

I hope you all are having a wonderful start to your week!

styling maxi skirts for "travel-sized" gals

//skirt, belt, sandals, necklace: thrifted / t-shirt: target / earrings: forever 21//

I'm a bit of a shorty—my 6"2 boyfriend calls me "travel-sized." So styling maxi skirts in a way so that they flatter me and don't make me look short and frumpy can be a challenge. Still, I love maxi skirts—they're super comfy, can be casual or dressy, are great for all seasons, and I don't have to worry about them creeping up and exposing too much skin, no matter what I'm doing, which is a major plus for me. This maxi skirt, in particular, is made of the softest jersey, and it swirls so nicely around my ankles when I walk. When I wear maxi skirts, I try to elongate my figure by wearing a fitted top, usually either more of a crop top, tucked in at the waist (a long necklace can be elongating as well!). I find that longer tops and sweaters can stunt my figure and just prove unflattering. 

What are your tips for styling maxi skirts? 

Anyway, life is picking up the pace again, and I'm enjoying it (this week, though, is it really only Thursday??). I started my summer class (Constitutional law) on Monday, and I'm working ahead so I can take a mini-vacation to head down to a Church convention next week. Meanwhile, with all I've got going on, my room has degenerated into a slight pigsty...it's kinda terrible. I'll have to see about making time to clean before I go crazy with all the mess. ;)

visiting idaho // flashback friday

I thought I'd try something a little different for today's post. I was ordering photo prints the other day, and I came across a bunch of photos in my library that for some reason or other, I hadn't gone through or edited or anything. I thought it would be fun to share them with y'all over the next few weeks. Hope you enjoy!

Early last September, after my birthday, my family took a short vacation over to Idaho, where we stayed at one of our timeshare's resorts near a beautiful lake. We spent time wandering around the lake and lazing around, watching sunsets, and then after sunset, the glorious thunderstorms that happened nearly every night of our stay. We visited small towns, on the hunt for the best antique and thrifting spots. Some of the places we visited were absolute busts, like when we almost lost ourselves among the dusty and disorganized (and not to mention overpriced!) mountains of junk in one antique store, but we did find a few gems. On the way back home, we stopped off at the Grand Coulee Dam, then drove over to Leavenworth to grab German food for dinner. It was a much more laid-back vacation than I was used to, and that ended up being kind of nice and relaxing. I'm thinking that it's about time to head back. :)